NEW DELHI: The government may be pulling all stops to dismiss the controversy over suspected bugging of finance minister's office as a "non-event", but the dust has not quite settled.

After the media reports on Chewing Gum Gate, the Intelligence Bureau, or IB, has discreetly reopened the inquiry into facts that were not brought to its notice in its probe last year: that a private agency had been called in by CBDT to sweep the finance ministry premises before the prime minister tasked the IB to look up the planted adhesives found at 16 locations.

Sources in the government told ET that not only was the Union home ministry not in the loop when the prime minister forwarded Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee's complaint directly to the IB chief, but even the IB, through the probe and thereafter, was unaware that its sweeping exercise at North Block was preceded by private detectives called in by the CBDT. In fact, both the IB and MHA learnt about the primary sweep by the private security agency from media reports.

So, as Mukherjee, and, more recently, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram joined each other in dismissing the bugging controversy as a nonevent, the Intelligence Bureau quietly quizzed chairman Sudhir Chandra last week for more details of the initial sweeping of the finance ministry carried out by the private agency. Details of the agency were sought. According to a senior government official, the IB is likely to get in touch with this agency to scan its findings and reach its own conclusion in the light of these findings.

On his part, Chandra on Sunday denied having given any explanation to IB. "I was not even the CBDT chairman then (when the suspected bugging was probed)," he said wondering why he should have been called for an explanation in the first place. The suspected bugging of the finance minister's office, which led him to complain to the prime minister, has fuelled speculations he said wondering why he should have been called for an explanation in the first place.

The suspected bugging of the finance minister's office, which led him to complain to the prime minister, has fuelled speculationsabout a trust deficit within the top echelons of the government. Certain facts that have emerged from the controversial episode are being cited to underline this alleged trust deficit. Firstly, Mukherjee chose to complain directly to the prime minister when he could have also written to the home minister to probe the "planted adhesives" spotted inside his office, his advisor Omita Paul's office, his private secretary's office and the finance ministry's conference rooms.

In fact, Chidambaram admitted in an interview on Saturday that he was not aware of the suspected bugging episode until last week's media reports. The second fact pointing to the mistrust is that the CBDT first called in a private security agency to sweep the finance ministry's office and not IB, the official agency to carry out sweeping and debugging. Thirdly, the prime minister too decided to keep Chidambaram out of the loop and directly tasked IB director to look into Mukherjee's complaint.

Fourthly, even though the IB carried out the probe, it was kept in the dark about it having been preceded by the private security agency in sweeping the finance ministry premises. The IB probe, which included sweeping of the office and forensic examination of the planted adhesives, found nothing adverse. All this while, IB was not aware that the CBDT had got a private agency to sweep the finance ministry first.

An "all clear" report ruling out any surveillance attempt was given to the prime minister. It is only after media reports unravelled the private agency angle that the IB has learnt new facts of the case. "IB is now trying to ascertain the identity of the private agency as well as take a look at its findings," said a senior government official